Vegan Hot Cocoa Crinkle Cookies

Merry Christmas! My Christmas wish is for everyone to enjoy a day filled with food, family, laughter and love. And COOKIES!

Today I'm sharing a special holiday cookie recipe that's vegan friendly and kid approved. I recently served these Hot Cocoa Crinkle Cookies as part of an all vegan spread at a kindergarten classroom holiday party, and they received such rave reviews from both parents and kids alike that I couldn't not share the recipe. Think of it as my little Christmas gift to you!

These cute little cookies are rich with chocolatey goodness and maintain an incredibly soft and chewy texture even days after baking them. I know because some of the leftovers came home with me and I marveled at their moistness several days later. If you like a cakey, brownie-like consistency to your cookie then these are the ones for you. I think the secret is in the applesauce- that can be our little secret. But the best part has to be those adorable teeny, tiny marshmallows that puff up as they bake and add a gooey, toasted element to an already dynamite cookie. Side note: you can find vegan marshmallows- they're out out there, but if you're not too strict on that type of thing just use the regular variety.

Serve these warm straight from the oven with a steaming mug of cocoa for the perfect wintertime treat. And don't skimp on the marshmallows in that cocoa, because there is no such thing as too many marshmallows.

makes about 3 dozen cookies
Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
2½ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup dutch-process cocoa powder
2 cups sugar
½ cup vegetable oil
¾ cup applesauce
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Several mini marshmallows

Instructions
1. In a small bowl whisk together flour, salt, and baking powder. Set aside.
2. In a medium bowl or electric stand mixer combine cocoa powder, sugar, vegetable oil, applesauce and vanilla extract until well blended.
3. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and mix until just combined. Gently knead into a ball of dough and wrap in plastic wrap. Chill for at least 2 hours.
4. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Bake for about 9 minutes, then remove cookies from oven and carefully press a few mini marshmallows into each cookie. Continue to bake for another 3-4 minutes or until marshmallows begin to puff and turn golden brown (cookies will look slightly under baked). Remove from oven and allow to cool for 2-3 minutes before transferring onto a wire rack to cool completely.

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Winter Kale Salad with Cranberry Vinaigrette

After realizing that the last several recent posts have featured sweeter recipes, I thought it might be a good idea to tip things over to the other side of the scale with something clean, green and healthy. I know it's that time of year when holiday party platters and Christmas cookies are tempting us left and right, but that's all the more reason to make sure you're practicing the art of balance with the rest of your meals, and that's exactly why you need this winter kale salad in your life.

It may not look as enticing as say, white chocolate truffles or eggnog marshmallows, but we all gotta get our greens in somehow, and I have to say that as far as kale salads go, this one's a winner.

It's chock full of wintery seasonal goodness, including some leftover cranberry sauce from Thanksgiving (don't judge) that was begging to be used up, so I transformed it into a luscious cranberry vinaigrette that would make a festive dressing to any holiday salad. If you don't have any cranberry sauce you could certainly substitute fresh cranberries- just be sure to add a bit of sweetener such as honey or agave to offset the tartness (and avoid puckered lips from your guests).

Kale leaves are massaged with the dressing to tenderize them, and then tossed with persimmon (of which I am slowly becoming a fan, especially in salads), crunchy toasted hazelnuts and gorgeous segments of Satsuma tangerines, which are at the height of their season currently. Oh, and did I mention there is also bacon? Yep, that too. You're welcome.

serves 4-6
Ingredients
for the cranberry vinaigrette:
1/4 cup cranberry sauce
1 Tbsp. shallot, diced
2 Tbsp. freshly squeezed orange juice
2 Tbsp. white balsamic vinegar
1 tsp. dijon mustard
1/2 cup olive oil
salt
freshly ground pepper

for the salad:
1 bunch kale, stems removed and leaves torn into small pieces
2 Fuyu persimmons, thinly sliced
3 Satsuma tangerines, segmented
1/4 cup toasted hazelnuts, chopped
1/4 cup crumbled bacon

Instructions
1. For the salad dressing, add cranberry sauce, shallot, orange juice, vinegar and dijon in a food processor and pulse until smooth. With the motor running, gradually add olive oil and blend until emulsified. Season with salt and pepper.
2. Add kale to a large salad bowl and pour vinaigrette over kale. You may end up with extra vinaigrette; if so simply reserve for another use. Massage kale leaves gently with hands or tongs to evenly distribute vinaigrette and soften kale. Add remaining salad ingredients and toss together just before serving.

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